Many different forms of mop are known. Generally, they comprise an elongate handle to one end of which is attached a head in which a cleaning substrate is secured. In a strip mop, the cleaning substrate is a web material selected for the type of surfaces on which the mop is to be used, with an absorbent web material being preferred for wet cleaning. The web material is secured in the mop head so that a length of the material (typically about 20-30 cm) hangs down from the head and will wipe the surface to be cleaned when the mop head is moved over the latter. Typically, several layers of web material are secured together in the mop head and, over at least a part of their length, are subdivided into strips of about 1 cm in width. Conventionally, dome-shaped mop heads are employed since they facilitate the arrangement of the web material in an effective manner and are also visually pleasing.
Examples of dome-shaped strip mop heads employing various forms of web material are described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,114,224; U.S. Pat. No. 6,253,408; WO 96/08194; WO 97/06722; and EP-A-0 537 963.
Other known types of mops include string mops, in which the cleaning substrate is a bundle of absorbent strings or fibres that hang down from the mop head; and flat mops in which the cleaning substrate is generally either a flat sponge or an absorbent web material held against a lower flat face of the mop head. Examples of string mops are described in GB-A-2 191 937; GB-A-2 255 712; U.S. Pat. No. 1,806,402; U.S. Pat. No. 4,531,251; and WO 92/14064. An example of a typical flat mops is described in WO 01/12052.
For use in the domestic environment, many consumers show a preference for strip mops for wet cleaning because the cleaning substrates can be highly absorbent and can also be wrung-out very effectively, thereby simplifying and speeding-up the task of wet cleaning a large surface such as a floor. However, a continuing problem with all mops (including strip mops) is that it can be difficult to access certain areas of surfaces such as the corners of a floor.
In the particular case of a flat mop for use in cleaning confined vertical or slanted surfaces such as vehicle windows, it as been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,862,565 to provide a mop head with a diamond shape, to allow the head to extend into small angular areas of a surface to be cleaned. In WO 00/71014, it has been proposed to provide a round or oval mop head with an angled part to facilitate cleaning corners and, in the field of strip mops, it has been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,543,082 to provide a mop head with boundary edges that are curved to form two corners, stated to be for the purpose of improved operability and suitability for cleaning corners
The present invention is directed to problem of providing an effective strip mop that will facilitate access to confined or angular areas of a surface such as the corners of a floor. The invention is further concerned with enhancing the general appearance and potential effectiveness of a strip mop, and with reducing the possibility that the mop head will damage either the surface that is being cleaned or objects and surfaces adjacent thereto.